The semi-weekly fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1886-1887, 1887-08-26
AGRICULTURAL ADDRESS.

The following Agricultural address
by Washington Whitehorn was recently
acclaimed by Mr.. Jones of Plymouth,
at public assemblage of the citizens in
that town, with good affect.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:
1 congratulate you upon your good
judgement in selecting me to deliver the
address before this honorable society.
No one has taken agriculture more to
heart or made it SO much a study as l
have. Ihave spent my hole life in read :.
ing agricultural reports, and have driven
out into the country two or three times.
When look round me and see the
evidence of farmers life I says God
bless him! tell you [ would rather
borrow a hundred dollars of a good old
honest farmer than any other man. 1
would rather eat at a farmers table
than eat at my own.
What better sign of agricultural thrift
can be found than beautiful quilts, pre-
sents each one made of several thousand
pieces? / tell you they are the finest
products that can be cultivated on
farm. When a good old farmer wraps
one of those around him and lies down
to pleasant dreams, the mortgages on
his farm and the taxes vanish into thin
air. am over-joyed to look around and
see so many good looking girls. The
crop is splendid. 1t shows they were
raised on good farms, and 1 think they
deserve the premium. If l wasn't a
married man I would be agricultural
enough to try and cultivate a liking for
some of them.
am pleased to see that every year
farming becomes more advanced as a
profession. Those wax flowers and
crocheted ferns show to the whole world
Just how it is improving, and those
sewing machines are so finely adjusted
that they will SOW anything from a cal
leo dress to field of oats. When l was
a boyish child we did our sowing by
hand, and may add that some boys
were raised by hand-with switch in
it.
Perhaps there is nothing that shows
the progress of the agricultural inter
ests better than the horse races. When
looked at those feats of speed wanted
to be farmer, and became so enthusiast
tic over it that invested ten dollars on
the white horse for purely agricultur
al purpose, but had forgotten to state
I had bet on the horse that came in last
and the fellow went away with my mon
ey and his finger pulling down his left
eye. Nevertheless, agriculture, as ex-
hibited in horse race, is good thing.
The occupation of a farmer in my mind
is one of the most pleasant of recrea-
tions. What is more delightful than to
see the patient OK hitched up to the sickle
going through field reaping potatoes
from the potato stalks? What is more
that your corn is coming up whether you
are there or not, or to sit back and drink
cider and be aware that every stalk of
wheat is growing without your being
compelled to be out there and put head
on it, while the corn puts it's ears out
and listens for the beakfast bells? In
the occupation of an honest farmer l
can imagine nothing more exhilarating
and enabling than eating ham and egg
breakfast. If I were farmer how de-
lghtful would it be to roll up my sleeves
and go forth while the sun is warm and
effulgent and eat apples, or hitch up my
team early to spanker and go down
the road like a breeze with another
breeze after it. Farmers are independ-
ent; indeed they are the most independ
emit set of people know of, and when
fair time comes around with what pride
does the farmer gather together the pro-
duce of his farm for exhibition to the
astonished world He brings in his
premium thistles, which show how
much pains have been taken to cultivate
them; and his champion mince pies,
which only grow to perfection on a good
farm; and his three legged chickens;
and his horned muley cows; and his per-
simmons; and crab-cider, and his paw
paws; and ginesug; and ripe luscious
cucumbers: and his cane fishpoles with
corn blades stuck on them; and smear